Pinterest is now taking digital shopping a bit more seriously. Pinterest has come up with a new tool for finding things that you might wish to buy.

How this will work?

You will have to go to Pinterest search then tap the visual search button and point your camera at anything you wish to buy or are interested in, and it will automatically do a visual search for everything you see. Pinterest will then collect the photo with a bunch of objects it thinks it is recognizing, and a user can tap on any dot to get recommendations for similar items.

When will these visual search tools roll out?

The San Francisco-based startup said all the new visual search tools will be rolling out in the next few months. Also, the updates to visual search are just one part of a series of updates that are rolled out.

However, a part of updates that Pinterest rolled out a few days back include new updates to its visual search tools. Now, when you will open up a photo on Pinterest, it will automatically detect the objects in the photo that the company thinks they can actually find those products in real world.

These products appear as dots on the screen whenever a user taps the visual search button. Users have the power to resize the image boxes in order to refine the search on Pinterest.

This feature is helping Pinterest have an edge over other online commerce companies. Therefore, Pinterest in investing heavily in visual search tools which helps the users to search for pins and products on the basis of a simple image. Undoubtedly, there are other image-search tools on the web but Pinterest is one of the few companies that has been open about the major focus it’s placed on visual search.

Changes in Pinterest: It’s affect on users

The update to the visual search with a camera has moved Pinterest’s access to a user’s buying experience even closer to moments of initial awareness. There is a difficulty for an e-commerce company to tap into moments where a user is likely to make a decision regarding the purchases on the basis of something they see in the real world.

Also, there is a short span of time that any retailer has a chance to capture and that’s something that brick and mortar stores excel at. Pinterest with the addition of its camera search technology has become eligible to tap into that moment but with an online shopping experience.

However, it is natural for Pinterest. But why?

This seems natural for a company like Pinterest as it is largely based on visual experience and provides a more engaging experience as compared to text. This helps the company push users to convert into potential customers.

Pinterest taps all moments

This visual company is tapping into users from all moments in the purchasing process, whether it is becoming aware of certain brands and products, to searching for these specific products and brands, declaring interest, and finally buying them. This is because Pinterest has access to all these touch points.

Pinterest also rolls out new commerce tools

Along with big updates to visual search, Pinterest is also rolling out new commerce tools that will track users around the web, providing them an option to search for products and buy them on any platform they wish.

One of the biggest updates here is the new ‘shopping cart’ which the company is rolling out.

Users who feel the products are purchasable on Pinterest can add them to a shopping cart which a user can access on any other platform where the user has their account active. Therefore, if a user sees something they wish to buy on their mobile phone, but is not ready to buy it just yet, they can purchase it on their tablets later. Also, they can purchase it on the web. Pinterest is rolling out purchasing for its web versions along with moving the purchasing experience beyond simply its applications.

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Changes in Pinterest: It’s effect on brands

Not only users will be effected but brands will also get a new potential touch point for consumers i.e., branded pages. If a user is looking for bag they like, they can jump over to the page of the retailer where they will see similar products and services from the same retailer.

Why these tools are important for Pinterest?

Since Pinterest has access to all the points of a consumer’s buying experience, therefore, the commerce tools are important for Pinterest.

Also, Pinterest has a lot of business content which makes creating a smooth purchasing experience essential for the service.

Conclusion

Well, it is companies like Pinterest that can experiment as they are startups. Pinterest has more than 100 million users and with these changes in its commerce experience, they will definitely enhance the user experience.

Sakshi is a content marketer during the day and a reader by night. She writes content sprinkled with a twisted imagination. She has done her graduation in psychology from Delhi University and has an insane love for history.